Three Dems, including incumbents' brother, seek governorís council seat

Written by Edward F. Maroney

August 31, 2012

Three Dems – including his brother – seek to oust governor’s council incumbent

One challenger will be chosen Sept. 6

A debate among the three Democratic candidates for governor’s council Aug. 23 shed light on the somewhat obscure office without generating a lot of heat.

Nick Bernier of Swansea, Oliver Cipollini of Marstons Mills, and Walter Moniz of New Bedford were quizzed at Cape Cod Community Media Center by Sean Corcoran, senior reporter for WCAI-FM. The debate will be shown again a number of times on cable channel 17 (www.capemedia.org) before the Sept. 6 primary vote.

Bernier, an attorney, said his legal education and experience would be an advantage in reviewing men and women proposed for judgeships, clerk magistrate positions, and related appointments.

Cipollini, a retired clerk magistrate in his third campaign for the office, said he’s attended about 40 percent of this term’s council meetings in Boston. His brother, Charles Cipollini of Fall River, is the incumbent. Charles has no challenger in the Republican primary.

Moniz, a former community liaison for the mayor’s office in New Bedford who’s running again for the council, said the time he’s spent in the city’s neighborhoods and the district’s communities have made clear to him the criteria the public wants used in selecting judges.

Both Bernier and Moniz said those criteria should not focus on a candidate’s race, gender, or sexual orientation, and cited last year’s contentious review of eventual Supreme Court Justice Barbara Lenk, who became the first openly gay person to serve on the SJC.

Cipollini did not say whether he would have voted for or against Lenk, even when asked directly by one of the other candidates. “Attorney Bernier, I’m not my brother,” he said.

In selecting candidates, Bernier noted that “a judge in Land Court would have very different credentials and experience than in district court in New Bedford.” Looking at past conduct would be important. “I would call former litigants, former adversaries,” he said, “to see what that candidate does under pressure and when challenged. We can’t respect our court system unless our court system respects us.”

In addition to reviewing his or her political contributions to check for a possible patronage appointment, Cipollini said he would “make sure the person has a judicial temperament, the perseverance and courage to be a judge…. They are lonely people. They can’t have a lot of friends.”

“We need to confirm future judges in district and superior courts (who will be) a partner with our cities and towns,” Moniz said. “Community development, economic development play big roles with our court systems. I want our courts and our communities to work hand in hand.”

The candidates highlighted a variety of concerns.

Bernier noted the high rate of acquittals in driving under the influence arrests. Cipollini said he’d keep an eye out for patronage in the form of political contributions by candidates for judgeships or magistrate positions. “I don’t accept contributions,” he said, “and I don’t give any contributions.”

By listening to residents, Moniz said, he’d heard that “our guns laws are not being enforced here on Cape Cod,” and that “drunk drivers” are a continuing problem. “I want to make sure we confirm judges who are gonna enforce those issues,” he said.

Asked by Corcoran whether they would donate the position’s $26,000 salary to charity, each hopeful had his own slant.

“I likely would look toward donating a substantial part, if not all,” said Bernier, noting that as a young lawyer he’s carrying a debt of about $180,000. He also said he’s thought about abolishing the council. “It can go one of two ways,” he said. “Give it more to do, or just run it through the state Senate. Either it really works for us or we don’t need it.”

CORRECTED“I intend to take the salary,” said Cipollini. “It’s minute compared to how much I’ve put into the (race.] I’ve put 50,000 miles on my car [each election season]. Ask Jiffy Lube; I’m there every week and a half. Money is not an issue in this race.” In a later round of questions, Cipollini said, “I also believe the governor’s council should be eliminated.”

Saying he would accept a salary, Moniz said, “I attend about three or four community charitable events a day. All the money will go back into the community.”

Corcoran asked Cipollini to talk about how his views differed from his brother, the incumbent.

“My brother differs from me as he is a conservative, super conservative Republican,” Cipollini said. “I am a social-oriented Democrat. I believe in benefits for people who need the benefits.”

Cipollini said he asked his brother to run on the Republican ticket in 2010, telling him, “I’m not wasting all this money and we not get the conservative judges we want. He beat me; (that was) not planned. I just wanted him as an insurance policy that one of us get the votes.”

Bernier said he decided to run because the Cipollini brothers “both held completely different views than I did.” Moniz said Charles Cipollini said on Election Day 2010 that he didn’t want the job. “That’s why I decided to announce my campaign the day after,” Moniz said.

Later in the debate, when Corcoran invited the candidates to ask each other questions, Cipollini told Moniz that he felt “it is an honor for you to get your GED (during the campaign). You present yourself well. I gotta ask you, Walter, with due respect, how are you gonna be able to deal with vetting where most of the people up there are lawyers and you really have to understand procedures in the courthouse?”

Addressing the television audience rather than Cipollini, Moniz replied, “Anybody listening to this debate, don’t let (anybody) discourage you on education.” Then referring to his challenger, he said, “Oliver, for the past 15 years when I worked for the office of the mayor, the issues were the gun laws not being enforce, the revolving door system (of criminals being returned to the streets) was a problem. The issues are the same. Your brother should have been out in the community and hearing what the issues are.”

Bernier and Moniz used part of their closing time to cite endorsements, the former by state Sen. Dan Wolf and the latter by U.S. Rep. Barney Frank and state reps Demetrius Atsalis, Sarah Peake, and Cleon Turner. Cipollini thanked his supporters and praised the trio of candidates as “all Democrats proud of our partisan politics and proud of being Democratic.”